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Senate Bill Aims to Facilitate Public-Private Collaboration to Advance AI Innovation
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Senate Bill Aims to Facilitate Public-Private Collaboration to Advance AI Innovation

Sens. Todd Young, R-Ind.; Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.; Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; and John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., have introduced bipartisan legislation that would maintain U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence by strengthening collaboration between the government and the commercial sector.

The Future of AI Innovation Act would authorize the U.S. AI Safety Institute at the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop voluntary AI standards and create testbed programs with the Department of Energy’s national laboratories, Young’s office said Thursday.

The bill would also authorize public-private partnership testbeds to create new materials for advanced manufacturing, create grand challenge prize competitions to encourage AI innovation across the private sector, develop publicly available datasets to accelerate new AI advancements and create international alliances on AI research and development.

“This bipartisan bill will create important partnerships between government, the private sector, and academia to establish voluntary standards and best practices that will ensure a fertile environment for AI innovation while accounting for potential risks,” Young said.

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Air Force, DARPA Demo Machine Learning-Based Autonomy Using X62A VISTA Aircraft
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Air Force, DARPA Demo Machine Learning-Based Autonomy Using X62A VISTA Aircraft

The U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency have demonstrated the capability of artificial intelligence algorithms to control the X-62A Variable In-Flight Stability Test Aircraft as part of DARPA’s Air Combat Evolution program.

The military branch and DARPA tested the AI-controlled X-62A VISTA aircraft against a manned F-16 plane in within-visual-range combat scenarios, also known as dogfighting, during a demonstration at Edwards Air Force Base in California, Air Force Materiel Command said Wednesday.

“It’s very easy to look at the X-62A ACE program and see it as under autonomous control, it can dogfight, but that misses the point. Dogfighting was the problem to solve so we could start testing autonomous artificial intelligence systems in the air. Every lesson we’re learning applies to every task you could give to an autonomous system,” said Bill Gray, the school’s chief test pilot.

The demonstration marks the first-ever use of machine learning-based autonomy in flight-critical platforms.

“The X-62A is an incredible platform, not just for research and advancing the state of tests, but also for preparing the next generation of test leaders,” said Col. James Valpiani, commandant of the Test Pilot School.

Aside from the Air Force, DARPA’s ACE program partners include Johns Hopkins University, MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Calspan, Cubic, EpiSci, Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works arm and Shield AI.

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NOAA Selects 4 Contractors for Ground Processing Demonstrations
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NOAA Selects 4 Contractors for Ground Processing Demonstrations

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has tapped Booz Allen Hamilton and three other contractors to perform research and demonstration of new technologies and novel concepts for ground processing in support of future operations of the National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service, or NESDIS.

NOAA said Tuesday it awarded over $3.46 million in Ground Processing Demonstration contracts to Axta Space, Booz Allen, Cognitive Space and KSAT for work with at least eight months of period of performance.

Studies and demonstrations from contractors are intended to assist NESDIS in evaluating innovative technologies for enhanced ground processing enterprise. The focus areas are constellation mission operation, next generation ground infrastructure and data processing and dissemination.

The NESDIS-administered Joint Ventures Partnerships program funds the GDP awards.

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DTS Founder Edward Tuorinsky Proposes ‘Robust Response’ to Ensure Compliance With NIST SP 800-171 Revision
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DTS Founder Edward Tuorinsky Proposes ‘Robust Response’ to Ensure Compliance With NIST SP 800-171 Revision

A “robust response” to the upcoming release of the third revision of National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-171 must feature three elements, according to Edward Tuorinsky, the founder of and managing principal at cyber, consulting and management services provider DTS.

Organizations must first evaluate the compliance of their security posture with the revised special publication’s new assessment objectives. Revision 2 had a total of 320 assessment objectives while Revision 3 brings that number up to 390, Tuorinsky wrote in a Thursday Federal News Network article.

Organizations must then prepare a plan of action and milestones, or POAM, that would close the gaps identified in the initial evaluation. The POAM would have to outline the tasks that have to be undertaken and propose a schedule for the work.

The third element involves preparing a new system security plan that would provide documentation proving that an organization meets Revision 3’s 390 assessment objectives. These objectives are spread across 95 security controls, down from 110 in Revision 2. In order for an organization to be compliant with a given control, all associated assessment objectives must be met.

Tuorinsky says an organization can reuse elements from a prior system security plan based on Revision 2 and simply edit them to align with the requirements of Revision 3.

NIST 800-171 rev 3 is expected to come out in late April or May.

DTS Founder Edward Tuorinsky Proposes 'Robust Response' to Ensure Compliance With NIST SP 800-171 Revision

Edward Tuorinsky will join other cyber experts, government leaders and industry visionaries in speaking about the dynamic and evolving role of cyber in the public sector at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Cyber Summit, which will take place in June. Register now to attend this important event!

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DHA Requests Commercial Technology Proposals to Transform Military Health System
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DHA Requests Commercial Technology Proposals to Transform Military Health System

The Defense Health Agency is seeking commercial platforms designed to provide a human-centered patient experience for its beneficiaries and improve the collection of patient interactions and data in the Military Health System Information Portal.

DHA’s patient care transformation initiative is focused on three lines of effort: improving patient care, developing provider-supported technology in the Health Ecosystem and acquiring data management support services, according to a notice posted by the Defense Innovation Unit.

In the first LOE, DHA is looking for a commercial technology designed to provide beneficiaries frictionless access to care and services, enable seamless integration with the existing electronic health record and allow interoperability with wearables and devices.

The agency also plans to expand the Health Ecosystem to include applications for scheduling, chart search, virtual nursing telemetry, remote patient monitoring and hospital command centers to reduce administrative burdens on its workforce.

For the final LOE, DHA is inviting the industry to propose technologies designed to allow MHS users to access, manipulate and present patient-specific health data to inform decision-making.

Interested parties have until May 1 to submit responses.

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Madelaine Sumera Joins Mobilize Vision as SVP of Public Sector
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Madelaine Sumera Joins Mobilize Vision as SVP of Public Sector

Madelaine Sumera has been appointed senior vice president of public sector at Mobilize VISION, a software development company.

She announced the move in a LinkedIn post in which she said she is “excited to join the Mobilize VISION family.”

Sumera is a seasoned technology leader with experience in both government and industry organizations. She began her career in the U.S. Air Force, where she served in medical roles for two decades, and later became medical director the the Defense Threat Reduction Agency’s Chemical and Biological Detection and Diagnostics Division.

After leaving the agency, she assumed the position of deputy director of Penn State University’s Applied Biological and Biosecurity Research Laboratory.

Sumera most recently served as vice president of business development and communications at Advanced Technology International, a role in which she assessed new business areas, led client and partner relationships and determined current and future market opportunities.

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VA Seeks Vendors to Support T&E Work on Modernized Electronic Health Record Platform
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VA Seeks Vendors to Support T&E Work on Modernized Electronic Health Record Platform

The Department of Veterans Affairs seeks to determine the availability of contractors that can meet the requirements of the Independent Enterprise Testing and Support Services Contract.

According to a request for information posted Tuesday on SAM.gov, the purpose of the IETSS contract is to provide support for the testing community overseen by the VA Electronic Health Record Modernization Integration Office Program, which works to ensure the seamless deployment of and transition to the Oracle Health EHR platform.

Work under the contract covers project management, test and evaluation support, testing and technology support, test systems engineering and implementation support and test process and quality management support.

IETSS will be a hybrid firm-fixed-price and time-and-materials contract. It will come with a 12-month base period of performance and four 12-month options and feature an optional transition support period at the end of the period of performance.

The RFI invites interested parties to answer questions regarding their experience and areas of expertise. Comments are also being sought regarding the contract’s performance work statement.

Responses must be submitted by May 3.

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John Bradford Wiegmann Nominated as ODNI General Counsel
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John Bradford Wiegmann Nominated as ODNI General Counsel

President Joe Biden has nominated John Bradford Wiegmann, deputy assistant attorney general for national security at the Department of Justice, to serve as general counsel of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

In his current position at DOJ, Wiegmann leads the national security division’s efforts to create and implement policies related to intelligence, counterterrorism, nation-state threats and counterespionage and manages appeals in national security-related prosecutions, the White House said Thursday.

His government career included time as assistant legal adviser at the State Department, deputy legal adviser at the National Security Council and special counsel to the general counsel at the Department of Defense.

Wiegmann focused on civil litigation during his tenure at Washington, D.C.-based law firm Shea & Gardner and served as a law clerk for Judge Patrick Higginbotham on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

The deputy assistant attorney general is a summa cum laude graduate of Duke University and a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School.

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NASA Eyes 2028 Launch for Dragonfly Rotorcraft Mission
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NASA Eyes 2028 Launch for Dragonfly Rotorcraft Mission

NASA has confirmed the mission of the Dragonfly rotorcraft to Saturn’s moon Titan, allowing the mission to advance to the completion of the final design phase.

NASA said Tuesday the mission was confirmed a year after the mission team passed all the technical requirements and standards of the preliminary design review.

The Dragonfly spacecraft will have eight rotors and is expected to arrive at Titan in 2034 to look for prebiotic chemical processes on Saturn’s moon.

“Dragonfly is a spectacular science mission with broad community interest, and we are excited to take the next steps on this mission,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Exploring Titan will push the boundaries of what we can do with rotorcraft outside of Earth.”

The Dragonfly mission is the fourth mission under NASA’s New Frontiers Program and will have a total lifecycle cost of about $3.35 billion and is expected to launch by July 2028.

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory oversees the design and development of Dragonfly.

Aside from research centers within NASA, APL’s partners in the mission are Lockheed Martin, Malin Space Science Systems, Honeybee Robotics, Penn State University and space agencies in Germany, France and Japan.

NSF Announces Convergence Accelerator Expansion to 10 Regions
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NSF Announces Convergence Accelerator Expansion to 10 Regions

The National Science Foundation is expanding its research and development accelerator program to 10 regions nationwide to expand the program’s reach and fully utilize the nation’s geography of innovation.

Over the next three years, the NSF Convergence Accelerator program will expand to 10 geographic regions: the Northwest, West, Southwest, Mountain, Midwest, South Central, Central, Southeast, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, the agency said Wednesday.

The 10 new Convergence Accelerators will facilitate partnerships among cross-domain researchers, practitioners and stakeholders to address current and future regional economic and societal challenges.

“The expansion of the NSF Convergence Accelerator will allow NSF to more fully harness the geography of innovation by increasing the concentration, proximity and diversity of NSF-funded researchers and practitioners, and by scaling the delivery of use-inspired solutions to benefit every part of the country,” said Erwin Gianchandani, assistant director for technology, innovation and partnerships at NSF.

The first stage of the expansion events is scheduled to begin in the Midwest region in May.

NSF expects to conclude the expansion program in the West region in 2027.

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